In a culture of positive influence, every employee seeks to be a source of positive energy to the rest of the team. Positive energy is one of the most valuable things they can bring to the team. Being known as a source of positive energy becomes part of their identity and their reputation as a member of the team. The words “energy source” are one of their most important self-definitions.
As the leader, you are the team’s primary source of positive energy. This mindset empowers you to express it as one of the team standards. You explain to them how important it is that they each be a source of positive energy to the rest of the team. The team depends on each of them to make this contribution.
In return, they will receive two wonderful rewards. First, they will receive energy from the rest of team that will make them more successful. Second, when people give energy to others, their own energy increases. One of our greatest energy sources is giving energy to others.
The goal is to lead your team to be intentional about providing positive energy consistently, and to be equally intentional about not depleting the team’s energy level. The way to lead this initiative is to commit to the following exercise for yourself, and then explain to your team how to do it for themselves.
Throughout the day, whether you are in a meeting, a one-on-one conversation, or any activity in which you are engaging with others to do something with them or for them, ask yourself these questions:
- Am I increasing the energy in the atmosphere, or decreasing it, or breaking even?
- Am I increasing the energy of the person I’m engaging with, or decreasing it, or breaking even?
- Am I giving positive energy to this meeting, or negative energy, or breaking even?
- Are my own thoughts increasing my energy, or decreasing it, or breaking even?
The point here is to lead everyone to take intentional ownership for the quality of the energy they are giving to whoever is being affected by them. It may need to start out as a conscious thought process, but the goal is for it to become instinctive. Let them know it’s an important part of their role as a member of your team, and it’s an important part of their reputation.